1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a bib for wearing over the torso of an individual when playing with pets. The bib is adjustable at the sides to fit most people. Padding is provided at the shoulders of the bib to protect the wearer from injury from a pet's claws as the pet perches on the wearer's shoulders. The front of the bib is provided with one set of pockets that are located high on the chest of the wearer and another set of pockets that are located at the bottom of the bib. The pockets can be used for hiding treats for the pets or the pets may use the pockets as hiding places. The front of the bib is also provided with interchangeable pet toys that removably secure to the bib under flaps provided on the front of the bib.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pet owners, and particularly those people who have multiple pets, experience certain problems when playing with their pets. The pet may soil the owner's clothing, the pet's claws may injure the owner, and the pet may become bored or scared and try to escape from the owner.
Some pets can soil the pet owner when the owner is playing with the pet. For example, birds are particularly notorious for defecating on their owners during play sessions. Thus, it would be desirable to have a washable covering to place over the owner when the owner is playing with these types of pets.
Other pets can injure the owner with their claws when they are playing. Birds and kittens are two types of pets that have sharp claws that can dig into the owner's shoulders during a play session. Thus, for these types of pets, it would be desirable to have a covering for the owner that was constructed of a thick material, such as terry cloth, and that was provided with extra padding on the shoulders, an area of the owner's torso particularly vulnerable to injury by an animal that is perched on the owner's shoulders.
Other pets are playful and like to play with toys that move, make noise or dangle. Cats are particularly playful. It would be desirable to have a covering for the owner that had toys secured to the front of it so that the owner could have his hands free to play with the pet. Since different pets may prefer different types of toys, it would be desirable to have a way to quickly change the toys that were attached to the covering.
Other pets are curious and are constantly looking for treats that may be tucked into dark recesses, such as pockets. Ferrets love to poke their noses into pockets and smaller animals, such as guinea pigs, hamsters, lizards, geckos, or snakes, like to crawl into larger pockets to hide. Because some pets like to remain perched on the shoulders of the owner whereas other pets like to crawl down the front of the owner, it would be desirable to have pockets located high on a protective covering for the owner for those pets that prefer to perch on the owner's shoulders and other pockets located at the bottom of the protective covering for those pets that are climbers.
There are a variety of vest or garments for covering the torso of an individual. Most of these vests or garments contain one or more pockets for holding items. However, most such pockets are provided with a top flap that is difficult a pet to negotiate. Also some types of vests, such as those worn by baseball umpires or police officers, are provided in the front of the vest with padding or some other type of shielding material to protect the wearing from impact with a projectile, such as for example a baseball or a bullet. Other garments are made with pockets that are removable. However, until now there were no bibs specially designed to shield the wear from the effects of playing with pets.
The present invention addresses this need. Specifically, the present invention is a washable bib that is adjustable at the sides to fit most people. The shoulders of the bib are padded to protect the wearer from injury from a pet's claws. The bib is provided with top-opening pockets that do not have top flaps. Pockets are located high on the front of the bib, adjacent to the shoulders, so that an inquisitive pet can look into the pockets to retrieve pet treats placed therein by the wearer while the pet remains perched on the wearer's shoulder. The front of the bib is also provided with removable, interchangeable pet toys that can be customized to provide entertainment for the pet and to make the pet more comfortable about being near the wearer. The bottom of the front of the bib is provided with additional larger top-opening pockets that also do not have top flaps. These larger pockets can be used for holding additional items or may serve as a place for pets to crawl into and hide.